“During my tenure as editor of FE&S, countless sources have told me it’s the people that make this industry so special and dynamic.”

Ask foodservice professionals about what they like most about the industry and almost all of them will tell you it’s the people they get to work with.

Joseph M. Carbonara, Editor in Chief

For some, the love of the foodservice industry blossoms as a result of their relationship with their parents, who they follow into the family business. Others get lured into the industry through a client relationship that leads to a second career. Occasionally, something more serendipitous will happen like an adolescent turning a part-time job into a career that spans four decades or someone answering a want ad in the newspaper to find not only their true vocation but a mentor and a lifelong friend, too.

Such is the case with FE&S’ 2010 class of award winners. They each followed unique career paths to building businesses that serve the same industry. As different as their backgrounds may be, what binds them is more than the fact that they serve the same industry. Each of our winners has helped build market-leading operations by managing their businesses on a transaction-by-transaction basis to deliver value on the customers’ terms. Personalizing every interaction and transaction, strong ethics and an insatiable desire to grow with their customers are the defining traits of these foodservice professionals. A strong desire to serve not only their customers but their channel partners too is a primary motivation for FE&S’ award winners.

None of our award winners set out to be the biggest player in their respective fields, just the best. That humble entrepreneurial spirit is also evident in FE&S’ 2010 Facility Design Project of the Year winner, Live! Market at Indiana Live! Casino in Shelbyville, Ind. In creating a facility that’s more reminiscent of a farmers’ market than a traditional casino foodservice environment, the designers provide consumers with a personalized experience that’s rarely found in this segment.

No one piece of equipment or food station really epitomize the success of the Live! Market. Rather, every detail contributes to the overall success of the project. And the only way an outcome of this nature is feasible is when all parties involved—from the operator to the countless factories that make the equipment used—come to the table and work together to develop a meaningful consumer experience. Naturally, that type of collaboration can only take place by bringing the right mix of people to the table.

And it’s that type of collaboration that goes into the production of every issue of FE&S. Our ability to educate and inform the foodservice industry rests on individuals’ willingness to share their thoughts and observations and successes and challenges. They trust our editors to accurately tell their stories and appropriately place them in the larger context of the foodservice industry. In other words, it is all about the people.

During my tenure as editor of FE&S, countless sources have told me it’s the people that make this industry so special and dynamic. And over the years, I got a small taste of that as my network of friends and contacts expanded. But I did not really begin to truly understand what my sources were saying to me until we went through this transfer of ownership to the Zoomba Group from Reed Business Information, the magazine’s previous publisher. The outpouring of support and genuine concern people showed for FE&S, my colleagues and me is incredibly humbling and energizing.

Thank you one and all for the friendship, care and trust that you continue to show toward FE&S and our entire team. It is a pleasure to be working with you once again.